"With over 25 years of experience specializing in hardness testers, we are positioned to offer you the right hardness tester for your application. We carry a broad range of bench and portable hardness testers to fit your needs. So tell us what you are testing and we’ll find a quality hardness tester that fits at a great price! With free lifetime technical support."

Bench Type Hardness Testers

ROCKWELL HARDNESS TESTER

TALL FRAME ROCKWELL HARDNESS
TESTER

SUPERFICIAL ROCKWELL
HARDNESS TESTER

TWIN ROCKWELL / SUPERFICIAL ROCKWELL
HARDNESS TESTER

DIGITAL ROCKWELL HARDNESS TESTER

SUPERFICIAL ROCKWELL HARDNESS TESTER

TWIN ROCKWELL / SUPERFICIAL HARDNESS
TESTER

DIGITAL BRINELL HARDNESS TESTER
- LOAD CELL

Portable Hardness Testers

MET SERIES
ULTRASONIC PORTABLE HARDNESS TESTER

PHT-1800
PORTABLE HARDNESS TESTER

PHT-3300
Mini-Integrated Portable Hardness Tester

PHT-1700
PORTABLE HARDNESS TESTER

PHT-3500
PORTABLE HARDNESS TESTER

PHT-3000
PORTABLE HARDNESS TESTER

PHT-2500 Portable Hardness Tester

PHT-1840
PORTABLE HARDNESS TESTER

PHT-4000
Multi-Functional Portable Hardness Tester

PHT-1740
PORTABLE HARDNESS TESTER

Principle of Rockwell hardness testing

The Rockwell hardness test is one of several common indentation hardness tests used today, other examples being the Brinell hardness test and Vickers hardness test. Most indentation hardness tests are a measure of the deformation that occurs when the material under test is penetrated with a specific type of indenter . In the case of the Rockwell hardness test, two levels of force are applied to the indenter at specified rates and with specific dwell times. Unlike the Brinell and Vickers tests, where the size of the indentation is measured following the indentation process, the Rockwell hardness of the material is based on the difference in the depth of the indenter at two specific times during the testing cycle. The value of hardness is calculated using a formula that was derived to yield a number falling within an arbitrarily defined range of numbers known as a Rockwell hardness scale.

The general Rockwell test procedure is the same regardless of the Rockwell scale or indenter being used. The indenter is brought into contact with the material to be tested, and a preliminary force (formally referred to as the minor load) is applied to the indenter. The preliminary force is usually held constant for a set period of time (dwell time), after which the depth of indentation is measured. After the measurement is made, an additional amount of force is applied at a set rate to increase the applied force to the total force level (formally referred to as the major load). The total force is held constant for a set time period, after which the additional force is removed, returning to the preliminary force level. After holding the preliminary force constant for a set time period, the depth of indentation is measured a second time, followed by the removal of the indenter from the test material. The measured difference between the first and second indentation depth measurements, "h", is then used
to calculate the Rockwell hardness number. For many older models of Rockwell hardness machines , the operator must manually control most or all of the steps of the test procedure. Many of today's newer machines automatically perform the entire Rockwell test.

PORTABLE HARDNESS TESTING

Why portable hardness testing? Portable hardness testers have come of age since the late 90’s, with a vast offering of high tech, digital instrumentation. Small, compact and menu driven, these instruments have never been easier to use for unlimited types of applications.

There are two basic methods of portable hardness testing that is accepted in the field today.
“Dynamic Impact” is based on the Leeb principle of hardness,developed by Dietmar Leeb in the 1970’s. A spring loaded impact body is thrust to the test surface, effecting rebound. The speed of both the initial thrust and the rebound is measured in a non-contact mode. This is calculated as a Leeb hardness value and then automatically converted to Rockwell C, B, Brinell, Vickers and Shore Values. It has effectually brought easy, fast and accurate results to portable hardness testing.

“Ultrasonic Contact Impedance” is based on a 136 degree diamond at the end of a vibrating rod being depressed into the test surface at a fixed load. The difference in Ultrasonic vibration frequency is then calculated into a hardness value. The UCI test procedure is slower than the Dynamic Impact style, however the “UCI” method of hardness testing is portable, easy and accurate. It also has its own advantages when utilized for certain testing applications. UCI testers are not restricted to large mass items like dynamic type testers. These units can test metals as thin as 1mm and at a hardness value as low as 20HRC (75HB). They also excel at performing hardness tests on larger, harder metals as well. Another reason for the rise in popularity is due to the fact that the UCI method is categorized as “Non-Destructive”. That translates into less scrap parts/ lower mfg costs due to necessary inspections.